Stepford wife
Robotically obedient spouse
A Stepford wife is a woman who seems robotically submissive, perfectly domestic, and devoid of independent thought or personality.
The term comes from Ira Levin's 1972 novel *The Stepford Wives*, in which suburban husbands replace their wives with compliant androids.
It's used critically to describe women who appear to have sacrificed their individuality for an idealized domestic role, or to mock expectations that women should behave this way.
She's turned into such a Stepford wife since they moved to the suburbs.
Stiff and unemotional
- mechanicalOperated by machinery
- programmedSet with instructions
- automatonSelf-moving mechanical device
- androidMachine resembling a person
synthetic · artificial · emotionless · expressionless · vacant · hollow · soulless · inhuman
Compliance with authority
- submissionYielding to another's will
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- docilityReadiness to submit
- subservienceExcessive willingness to obey
domesticity · homemaking · cookie-cutter · uniformity · sameness · interchangeable · identical · conformist
Satirical imitation
- caricatureExaggerated comic depiction
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
- mockeryScornful ridicule or travesty
- social commentaryAnalysis of societal conditions
critique · feminism · cautionary tale · allegory · dystopia · sci-fi · thriller · remake
Recurring narrative device
- archetypeOriginal model for copies
- clichéOverused, unoriginal expression
- typecastRepeatedly assigned similar roles
- misogynyHostility toward women
sexism · chauvinism · objectification · dehumanization · arm candy · kept woman · traditional · regressive
Entirely without fault
- immaculateCompletely without blemish
- impeccableFree from any defect
- pristinePure and untouched
- polishedSmooth, refined, accomplished
manicured · spotless · unblemished · ideal · picture-perfect · prim · proper · coiffed
robotic
Stiff and unemotional
- mechanicalOperated by machinery
- programmedSet with instructions
- automatonSelf-moving mechanical device
android · synthetic · artificial · emotionless · expressionless · vacant · hollow · soulless · inhuman · manufactured
obedience
Compliance with authority
- submissionYielding to another's will
- complianceAdhering to requirements
- docilityReadiness to submit
subservience · domesticity · homemaking · cookie-cutter · uniformity · sameness · interchangeable · identical · conformist · agreeable
parody
Satirical imitation
- caricatureExaggerated comic depiction
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
- mockeryScornful ridicule or travesty
social commentary · critique · feminism · cautionary tale · allegory · dystopia · sci-fi · thriller · remake · 1975
trope
Recurring narrative device
- archetypeOriginal model for copies
- clichéOverused, unoriginal expression
- typecastRepeatedly assigned similar roles
misogyny · sexism · chauvinism · objectification · dehumanization · arm candy · kept woman · traditional · regressive · anachronism
flawless
Entirely without fault
- immaculateCompletely without blemish
- impeccableFree from any defect
- pristinePure and untouched
polished · manicured · spotless · unblemished · ideal · picture-perfect · prim · proper · coiffed · poised
Stepford wifefree spirit
Uninhibited, unconventional person
nonconformist · career woman · firebrand · breadwinner · boss lady
Stepford wiferebel
Authority defier
iconoclast · maverick · hellraiser · troublemaker · rabble-rouser
Stepford wifeoriginal
First or inventive
iconoclast · hot mess · individual · eccentric · bohemian